I once put off writing a paper for my English class until the night before it was due. I cannot even remember the class, but I do remember that I came up with, (what I thought) an ingenious way of motivating myself to get the job done… M&Ms. Write a sentence, eat an M&M, write a sentence, eat an M&M, repeat until voila the paper is complete. My reward system worked! Until the next time I procrastinated…
Oxford English Dictionary defines procrastination as a “defer[ing] action, especially without good reason."
Why do we Procrastinate?
There are many reasons. At its most basic core, it’s part of being human to put off something that is uncomfortable, hard, or even not immediately rewarding. (In fact, some of us our better at procrastination than others!) As individuals, each of us have unique reasons for why we procrastinate in any given situation.
Take a moment to read through these Procrastination Reasons from solvingprocrastination.com and identify which ones resonate with your procrastination tendencies.
Abstract Goals: You are more likely to procrastinate when your goals are vague or abstract, compared to when your goals are concrete and clearly defined.
Rewards that are Far in the Future: You often procrastinate on tasks which are associated with rewards that you will only receive a while after completing the task. You may tend to discount the value of a reward that is far in the future.
Optimism About the Future: You sometimes procrastinate on tasks because you are optimistic about your ability to complete those tasks in the future.
Indecisiveness: You sometimes procrastinate because you are unable to make decisions in a timely manner.
Feeling Overwhelmed: You sometimes procrastinate because you feel overwhelmed about the tasks you need to handle.
Anxiety: You sometimes procrastinate because you feel anxious about a task that you need to handle.
Task Aversion: You often procrastinate because you are averse to the tasks that you need to perform.
Perfectionism: You sometimes procrastinate as a result of your perfectionism.
Fear of Evaluation or Negative Feedback: You sometimes procrastinate because you are afraid of being evaluated or because you are afraid of receiving negative feedback from others.
Fear of Failure: You often procrastinate because you are afraid of failing at the tasks you need to complete.
Lack of Energy: You are generally more likely to procrastinate if you suffer from low energy levels in terms of physical or mental energy.
Lack of Motivation: You often procrastinate because you are not motivated enough to work on a given task.
Distractibility: Distractibility is the inability to focus your attention on one thing at a time or to stay focused for long in general. High levels of distractibility can make you more likely to procrastinate.
Sensation Seeking: You sometimes procrastinate because you like to wait until right before the deadline to start working on tasks, in order to add pressure, challenge and excitement to those tasks.
Lack of Perseverance: Perseverance is the ability to maintain goal-driven behavior in the face of obstacles. A lack of perseverance makes you more likely to procrastinate, especially when it comes to finishing tasks that you’ve already started on.
Prioritization of Short-Term Mood: You often procrastinate because you prioritize your feelings in the present and do things that will help you feel better right now, even if this comes at the expense of taking action that aligns with your long-term goals.
What Do You Think?
Which of these procrastination reasons ring true for you?
In what types of situations do you tend to procrastinate?
While you procrastinate, what other things do you usually fill the time with?
In the next blog we’ll look at anti-procrastination techniques you can use to fight back the temptation to procrastinate. In the meantime enjoy some M&Ms.
“Why People Procrastinate.” www.solvingprocrastination.com. 2021 Solving Procrastination.
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